Progress April 2017

Apr 24, 2017
Gordon

End of April 2017.

Although our fundraising raised less than we'd hoped, that was always a risk with JustGiving, where the money comes to us whether or not we succeed. I had originally planned that JustGiving should be a short-term option to get us started and that within a week or two we would change over to a more typical all-or-nothing scheme with rewards available. A couple of accidents along the way spoiled that particular plan. C'ést la Vie.

The campaign is much larger, though, than just the task to raise some money for the immediate rescue from oblivion.

It was always to take a rather holistic approach to the problem, with multiple related but diverse:

Begin a journey towards a restoration. Because she's a British designed and built boat with a British substantially British history, we felt that her best chance of a future was here, though it was most certainly not her only chance, but that did and still does encourage the move to "home".

Find a buyer/restorer for her and/or

Get her into a public benefit use where we can perhaps do that ourselves.

The campaigns, therefore has focussed not just on getting finances started, but also in raising her profile to people, to organisations and so on, with a view to achieving any sensible combination or permutation of the aims.

At this moment, we believe we can move her but not far.

We have a possible buyer/restorer, a young man about whom we are still learning and who equally is still learning about us and just what will be the scale of the restoration. His background appears appropriate, his enthusiasm encouraging, his drive encouraging, his awareness of possible problems good, his budget tight but not infeasible.

This all remains tentative, of course, but it also still remains encouraging.

Our ultimate aim is to get Tally Ho back into the element in which she belongs, in a way that will give her the good future that she deserves.

Whatever the outcome of the immediate situation, we will continue with that aim.